M(e)thos

My summer is going by quickly!  In May, I attended (and presented at) both Computers and Writing at Purdue and the Rhetoric Society of America in Minneapolis.  Below are some pictures!

I took this picture as I walked around Purdue's campus.

Me by the Mary Tyler Moore statue in downtown Minneapolis-near where I presented!

Also, I had the opportunity to visit the National World War I Museum in Kansas City, Missouri to conduct research in their library/archive.  I found some really neat information for my dissertation which is focusing on WWI’s influence on professional communication.  Here’s another picture!

Darrek and I in front of the National WWI Museum.

Next on the list: my comprehensive exam!  I will pick them up on Fri. August 6th and return them on Monday, August 23rd.  Wish me luck

My spring semester is finally wrapping up!  It has been a long few months and I am quite ready for summer.  The signs of spring: our flowers are up!

As for my progress in grad school, I had my reading list for my comps exam passed and I will be finishing up the actual exam soon.  As I wrote before, I have to pass so I’m busy preparing for it! 

Also, I finished up my last grad class which was an elective in history.  I felt that the paper I wrote helped me figure out the direction of my dissertation further and I actually submitted it to the Association for Business Communication.  So, next fall I will be presenting my paper at the conference in Chicago.  I’m very excited!

As for this summer, I am taking it all off from teaching as I finish up my comps.  Plus, I feel that I need a break from grading   Teaching online this past semester was a new experience for me but it was worthwhile in that I found out how to effectively use the new medium for instruction.

Besides doing my comps this summer, I will be presenting at two conferences later this month.  First, Computers and Writing at Purdue and Rhetoric of Society in Minneapolis.  Both should be a great experience!

Another semester will be starting for me this Monday. But, it will be slightly different because I’m done with my grad coursework. Now, I will be working on an independent study and getting ready for my comps exam later this spring. What are comps?  Well, if I pass . . . wait, I have to pass . . . then I will be ABD which means I will just have to write my dissertation before graduating!

Also this semester I will not be teaching in the traditional way that I have been doing for the past 3 1/2 years. Instead, I will be helping to pilot an online writing class. We will see how it goes!

On a side note, I am looking forward to spring . . . even though that seems like a long time away with all of the snow and ice right now . . .

Well, its official . . . I have a new last name to start the fall semester with! Darrek and I were married on August 15th in Ames. It was such a wonderful day! Then we went on a short honeymoon since the fall semester started for me the next week.

My new name will be Marcy Leasum Orwig as my maiden name will now be my middle name.  It also makes it less complicated for my colleagues to keep track of who I am.  The fall semester is going okay . . . its just kind of hard to find a balance between my studies, my students, and my husband! 

Well, as much as I was looking forward to summer, here it is!  It started well with me teaching English 302 (business communication) for the first time.  I also took a teaching practicum to teach the class, English 504.  But, then my summer got even better when I got engaged on Memorial Day   So, now I’m done with the teaching and the grad class and I will be getting married next month!  I will start the fall semester with a new last name!!!!

Yay!  Summer is officially here   I submitted all my student grades on Friday and I turned in all my grad school papers on Thursday. 

This weekend I have been busy getting ready to move and I am in the midst of it right now.  The hardest part of the move is figuring out what to do with all my books and course material!  This week I will be going back home to Wisconsin for a short visit with Darrek and then I will be back to start teaching English 302 (business communication) on May 18.  So, between teaching and taking an extra grad class this summer, I should manage to keep myself occupied! 

Also, there needs to be rest time . . . after all, it is summer

I am really, really looking forward to summer!  As for school, next week is finals already and by next week I need to have the following done:

• English 503 course plan assignment
• English 548 paper
• English 621 paper

At this point, I have a rough draft of each assignment so I will use the rest of this week to polish them.  After a very busy semester, I really like where each assignment is going and I feel like I have learned a lot!  Once I have my stuff done, all that will be left is to grade my students’ work.  But, then it will be time for a short vacation back to Wisconsin!  Oh, I really can’t wait for summer!!

Well, I’ve accomplished pretty much everything that I wanted to since my last post.  Spring Break was wonderful and it allowed me to get caught up on stuff that I needed to get done.  Also, I got over my cold!  Oh, and I decided that I’m not going to the conference at Penn State this summer (it just didn’t work out). 

Now there is a new list that will take me until the end of the semester . . .

• Finish my English 548 paper
• Finish my final project for English 503
• Write my final paper for English 621

The good news is that I am caught up on grading!  I only have one more round to go before my students’ final.  Only a few more weeks to go . . .

Well, I haven’t posted recently because I’ve been really busy with this semester.  Amid my grad classes and the classes I teach, I managed to get in my portfolio exam the last week in February.  I should hear soon whether I passed it or not (fingers crossed)!  But, spring break is around the corner (actually next week)!  I can’t wait . . . especially since I currently have a cold that I’m trying to get over.  My spring break will still be busy . . . here’s my “to-do” list:

• grade all my students’ 250 research papers (just got them today . . . it is quite a stack!)
• work on English 548 synthesis paper, book review, proposal, and paper (whew!)
• make new 250 assignment sheets
• write 503 assignment and paper and finish up presentation
• register for Summer 2009 conference at Penn State (yay!)
• possibly finish up English 621 paper

Wow, now that I have that all written down I realize that I really DO have a lot to do!  But, it all gets done eventually.  I plan to also take some time to relax . . . and of course, Darrek time!

Yesterday Darrek took me to Living History Farms in Des Moines and I was able to see a period 1875 print shop.  It was amazing!  There were two “job” presses, a Gutenberg-styled press, and a newspaper press along with lots of type (both wood and lead).  It made me appreciate how easy printing today is when compared to the past.  I loved looking at all the font types, which reminded me an article from Newsweek which I have posted here also along with a picture of Darrek and I at the print shop.

just_go_to_helvetica_newsweek